Not applicable.
Not applicable.
Not applicable.
1. Field of the Invention
The present invention generally relates to garment hangers. More specifically, this invention relates to a garment hanger for storing and drying a flak vest in a fully supportive manner such that inside surfaces of the flak vest dry and the flak vest does not stretch or warp.
2. Description of the Related Art
Garment hangers are widely used throughout the world for storing and drying a diverse variety of garments. Until now, however, garment hangers have not been designed specifically for properly supporting and drying a flak vest. Nonetheless, some garment hangers have been specifically designed for other garments such as diving wetsuits and hockey equipment.
For example, U.S. Pat. No. 4,978,043 to Uke teaches use of a hanger for drying and storage of wetsuits and wetsuit accessories. Uke discloses a plastic hanger with an xe2x80x9cI-beamxe2x80x9d cross section having a hook with an elongated neck and a crossbar coupled to the elongated neck opposite the hook. A pair of outer fingers extend upwardly from opposite ends of the crossbar, and a pair of inner fingers disposed inboard of the pair of outer fingers also extend upwardly from the crossbar. A lower arm portion extends from one end of the crossbar downwardly therefrom, bends, and extends roughly parallel with respect to the crossbar. The inner fingers are used to support wetsuit gloves, the outer fingers are used to support wetsuit boots, and the lower arm is used to support a wetsuit hood.
In another example, U.S. Pat. No. 6,076,714 to Wyenn teaches use of a hockey hanger to hang hockey gear in a spaced apart manner to permit air drying thereof for preventing build up of mold and mildew thereon. The hockey hanger includes a bungee cord having a knot tied in the middle thereof to form a hanging loop for suspending the hanger. Accordingly, a pair of cord sections hang downwardly from the loop and each includes a series of clamps knotted thereto in spaced apart increments.
Unfortunately, neither of the above-mentioned prior art devices are specifically suited for properly supporting a flak vest, nor is a conventional wire hanger. Typically, a flak vest includes a front panel, a rear panel, and a pair of elastic shoulder straps connecting the panels together at shoulder portions thereof. Although the panels are typically made from comparatively lightweight material, the panels are too heavy for use with a conventional wire hanger. Nonetheless, flak vest users usually take the flak vest off their body and immediately hang the flak vest over a conventional wire hanger such that only the elastic shoulder straps hang from the hanger, leaving the panels sagging therefrom. Thus, due to the weight of the panels of the flak vest, the elastic tends to stretch beyond its memory and the shoulder portions of each of the panels tend to curl and deform under the strain of the hanging weight of the panels. Furthermore, the inside surfaces of each of the panels tend to come into contact with each other when the flak vest sags from the conventional wire hanger. Clearly, such a condition prevents the inside of the flak vest from drying properly and therefore leads to build up of undesirable wetness and body odor inside the flak vest.
From the above, it can be appreciated that conventional wire hangers and the special purpose garment hangers of the prior art are not fully optimized for use with flak vests. Therefore, what is needed is a flak vest hanger that is capable of comprehensively supporting a flak vest not only by the elastic shoulder straps, but also below the front and rear panels so as to prevent stretching the elastic shoulder straps and to promote separation of the panels for airflow therebetween.
According to the preferred embodiment of the present invention, there is provided a hanger for a flak vest, wherein the hanger includes an upper support, a lower support, and an adjustable vertical support connected therebetween. The upper support includes a hook portion connected to and extending upwardly from a cross-member portion. The cross-member portion connects to an upper end of the vertical support, such that the vertical support is disposed opposite the hook portion. The vertical support is a telescoping member that extends downwardly to an adjustable collar portion. From the adjustable collar portion, the vertical support extends further downwardly, terminating in a lower end. The lower end of the vertical support couples to the lower support at a base portion of the lower support. The lower support includes retainers extending upwardly from the base portion on opposite sides of the vertical support so as to define retaining channels between the retainers and vertical support. The hanger provides support of the flak vest from a pair of elastic shoulder straps on the flak vest and further provides support underneath bottom portions of front and rear panels of the flak vest to prevent stretching and deforming of the elastic shoulder straps. The hanger is also effective to keep the front and rear panels of the flak vest separated to promote air-drying of the flak vest.
According to an alternative embodiment of the present invention, there is provided a hanger for a flak vest having a front and rear panel with upper and lower ends thereon. Each lower end terminates in a J-shaped flange portion defining a retaining channel. A hinge feature is formed in the upper end of each panel such that the front and rear panels are suspended from the hinge feature about a pivot pin to enable the J-shaped flange portions to be oriented in back-to-back fashion. A hook portion is pivotably mounted about the pivot pin and includes a slot therein proximate the pivot pin, and a hook distal the pivot pin. A handle portion for carrying the hanger is accessible when the hook is pivoted downward and the hook portion is accessible for hanging the hanger when the hook portion is pivoted upward. The bottom portions of the front and rear panels may be spread apart so as to define a base for supporting the hanger upright on a flat surface.
It is an object of the present invention to provide a hanger for storing and drying a flak vest thereon in a fully supportive manner so that the flak vest does not stretch or warp and so that inside surfaces of the flak vest can properly dry.
It is another object to provide a hanger for a flak vest that is not only capable of supporting the flak vest by its elastic shoulder straps, but is also capable of supporting the flak vest underneath bottom edges of front and rear panels of the flak vest so as to prevent overly stretching the elastic shoulder straps of the flak vest.
It is a still another object to fabricate the hanger from relatively inexpensive and easy to assemble xe2x80x9coff-the-shelfxe2x80x9d materials such as standard piping and fittings, and readily available plastic stock.
It is yet another object to provide a hanger for a flak vest that is adjustable to accommodate a wide variety of flak vest sizes.
It is a further object to provide a flak vest hanger that can be easily disassembled into smaller sub-assemblies for compact storing and shipment.
It is still a further object to provide a hanger for a flak vest that is capable of keeping the panels of the flak vest separated so as to promote air drying therebetween.
It is yet a further object to provide a hanger for a flak vest that fully supports the flak vest as the hanger is hung from a hanger rod or rested upright on a flat surface.
These objects and other features, aspects, and advantages of this invention will be more apparent after a reading of the following detailed description, appended claims, and accompanying drawings.